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5.0 Irrigated Pasture Revegetation <br />A significant acreage of the revegetated areas will be returned to a postmining land use of <br />irrigated pasture including lands within the permit area, Map 2.05.4-5 shows all Irrigated <br />Pastures as well as all other post -mine land uses. <br />5.1 Irrigated Pasture Reference Area <br />Irrigated Pasture Reference Area Soil Production Factors <br />The local National Resources Conservation Service (MRCS) representative reviewed the <br />capability of all soils in the reference area and in the reclaimed area and assigned a relative <br />factor to each of these soils. This letter is included in Attachment 2.05.4(2)(e)-11. As can be <br />seen from the letter, some soils are more productive than others. The soil types are based on the <br />United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) - NRCS Soil Survey of San Miguel Area, <br />which was compiled in the field from 1978 to 1984. The report was published in 1986, and can <br />be obtained at the Soil Survey Staff, Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States <br />Department of Agriculture, Web Soil Survey, http://websoilsurvey.nres.usda.gov/. <br />Assignment of a relative production factor to each soil type allows for the calculation of acreage <br />weighted relative production factor for the entire reference area, and for an entire irrigated <br />pasture reclamation unit.). <br />Table 2.05.4(2)(e)-1 shows how the weighted average production factor for the reference area is <br />calculated. The same procedure is used to calculate a weighted average production factor for an <br />Irrigated Pasture reclamation unit. Narrative following the table explains how the weighted <br />average factors are used to adjust the reference area sample mean for bond release comparisons. <br />The adjustment procedure elevates the production success standard in situations where <br />premining soils were potentially more productive than reference area soils, and lowers the <br />standard in situations where pre mine soils were on average potentially less productive than <br />reference area soils. <br />Page 16 October 2016 (TR -75) <br />